Publication Date: Friday, August 27, 2004
Oaks gearing up to join new conference
Oaks gearing up to join new conference
(August 27, 2004) Northwest Conference invites Menlo, Colorado College into the fold
by Tim Goode
Menlo College's football team has been extended an invitation to join the Northwest Conference, an invitation Menlo intends to accept.
The Oaks hope to become a member of the conference, which currently includes University of Puget Sound, Pacific Lutheran, Whitworth, Lewis & Clark, Willamette and Linfield by the 2007 season. Colorado College also was extended an invitation, which would make the league an eight-team conference.
The addition of Menlo and Colorado benefits the Northwest Conference because a league needs at least seven teams to qualify for an automatic NCAA Division III playoff berth.
The benefits Menlo would enjoy moving from independent would be many. Among the most immediate would be the chance to play for a league title and the subsequent automatic playoff berth; all-conference honors for its players; and the creation of rivalries.
The Northwest Conference already is considered among the toughest in the country. This year Linfield is ranked No. 3 in the preseason poll and Pacific Lutheran and Willamette received votes in the poll.
"There is no downside to this," said Menlo coach Mark Ka'anapu. "It's been something we have been trying to do for a while. There is so much uncertainty as an independent. Scheduling becomes easier, costs become fixed, the team has something to play for."
The difficulty of scheduling became glaringly apparent this season. Menlo's season opener at Humboldt State had to be made a scrimmage because it was scheduled prior to the Division III opening date of Sept. 4.
In addition, the English Nationals are occupying the Sept. 18 date. The game will not count in NCAA statistics nor will it help Menlo in the all-important Division III rankings. With just eight NCAA games, the Oaks must dominate its schedule to have any hope of postseason play.
It will take two years for Menlo and Colorado College to become full members of the league because the other member schools must finish their existing contracts with their respective opponents.
The new league will offer plenty of challenges for the Oaks. Menlo last season went 7-3 and all three of its losses - Whitworth, 30-24; Lindfield, 30-24; and Pacific Lutheran, 35-28; were to Northwest Conference teams. The Oaks did beat Willamette, 41-19; and Puget Sound, 56-25.
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